This blog focuses on news and information regarding practice in the federal courts in the Eastern District of California, with a special emphasis on criminal and civil rights cases.

Blog Author

John Balazs is an attorney in Sacramento, California, specializing in criminal defense, including appeals, habeas corpus, pardons, expungements, and civil forfeiture actions. After graduating from UCLA Law School in 1989, he clerked for Judge Harry Pregerson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. John was an Assistant Federal Defender in Fresno and Sacramento from 1992-2001. He currently serves as an adjunct professor in clinical trial advocacy at the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law. Please email EDCA items of interest to Balazslaw@gmail.com. Follow me on twitter @balazslaw.

Disclaimer

This blog is for informational purposes only. Nothing in this blog should be construed as legal advice. The law can change rapidly and information in this blog can become outdated. Do your own research or consult with an attorney.

June 10, 2016

On a September night four years ago, 20-year-old George Macias Jr. was riding his motorcycle on Willow Avenue when a Clovis police officer pulled him over.

What happened next to Macias is the subject of a federal civil rights lawsuit in which Macias contends four Clovis police officers savagely beat Macias while he was handcuffed and used a stun gun on him.

In fact, a Fresno County Superior Court jury in March 2014 found Macias not guilty of resisting arrest. Macias pleaded guilty to the traffic infraction of driving a motorcycle without a license, court records say.

Piccuta says the proof that officers Steve Cleaver, Cesar Gonzalez, Eric Taifane and Angel Velasquez fabricated their account is in his second-amended civil complaint against the City of Clovis. But the file includes redactions ordered by U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara McAuliffe. The redacted information covers confidential Internal Affairs documents pertaining to the officers’ account of the incident.

On June 17, Piccuta, who has filed a motion to unseal the information, will ask McAuliffe to reconsider her decision. “I’m fighting to make this public because everyone in Clovis should know this information,” Piccuta said in a telephone interview.

Comments

On a September night four years ago, 20-year-old George Macias Jr. was riding his motorcycle on Willow Avenue when a Clovis police officer pulled him over.

What happened next to Macias is the subject of a federal civil rights lawsuit in which Macias contends four Clovis police officers savagely beat Macias while he was handcuffed and used a stun gun on him.

In fact, a Fresno County Superior Court jury in March 2014 found Macias not guilty of resisting arrest. Macias pleaded guilty to the traffic infraction of driving a motorcycle without a license, court records say.

Piccuta says the proof that officers Steve Cleaver, Cesar Gonzalez, Eric Taifane and Angel Velasquez fabricated their account is in his second-amended civil complaint against the City of Clovis. But the file includes redactions ordered by U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara McAuliffe. The redacted information covers confidential Internal Affairs documents pertaining to the officers’ account of the incident.

On June 17, Piccuta, who has filed a motion to unseal the information, will ask McAuliffe to reconsider her decision. “I’m fighting to make this public because everyone in Clovis should know this information,” Piccuta said in a telephone interview.